Tray construction



Aug. 22, 1944. s. SAUL. JR 2,356,473

TRAY CONSTRUCTION Filed Feb. 24, 1943 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Q vik INVENTOR T Samuel Saul, Jr.

Aug. 22, 1944. s SAUL, JR 2,356,473

TRAY CONSTRUCT I ON Filed Feb. 24, 1943 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR 'Samuel Saul, J".

Patented Aug- 22, 1944 2,356,473

- UNITED STATES PATENT ran cons'muo'rron Samuel Saul, In, Pittsburgh, Pa. Application February 24, 194:, Serial No. 476,885

3 Claims. (01. 220-1) This invention is for a tray construction and r lates to a. tray of the type used in various industrial operations wherein the tray is designed to be removably supported on a rack.

Figure 5 is atransverse vertical section on the plane or line VV of Figure 3;

Figure 6 is a fragmentary view similar to Figure 5, showing a modified forward lip construc- This invention is especially adapted for use in 5 tion for the tray; connection with racks of the type disclosed in my Figure 'I is a. fragmentary view representing a copending application Serial No. 465,625, filed section in the plane of line VII-VII of Figure November 14. 1942, now Letters Patent No. 2,316,- 5, showing a detail of the handle construction at 892, dated April 20, 1943, and the present inventhe end of the tray. tion may be considered as complementary to th 10 In the drawings, 2 designates a platform supone therein disclosed. ported on casters 3 to enable it to be rolled about. In various industrial plants. racks are t This platform, as more fully-shown and desively used onto which may be hung trays, these scribed in y impending application. s P o de trays being adapted to receive pieces 1 work with an upwardly extending frame, the frame which are being processed. The trays are ordiincluding par inclin racks 4. The racks narily hung on the a k so as t project later. are formed of angle iron with one web of each ally from the racks. Several trays are usually angle turned outwardly. This outwardly turned placed on each rack. Th trays may b brought edge is provided with a series of equidistantly to a particular station full of parts to b Ope spaced notches 5, preferably of the form shown in ated upon. The operator at that particular sta- Figure forming intermediate fingers n may remove the parts from one tray, per- 8. These hooks or fingers are preferably of the form some machining operation and then tran5 shape fully shown and described in my copendfer the parts t another t Trays may be ing application so astohave a maximum strength moved about individually frequently a whole and to readily engage the trays but shaped to rack is supported on a carriage so that several prevent accidental displacement of the tray due to trays may be moved along t t rack from the overloading of one end of the tray. one place to another. In the drawings I have shown but a single tray By reason of t nature of the work in com but it will be understood that several of the trays nection with which these trays are used they are may be simultaneously 5 single 9 subject to abusive handling and to hard wear 3 The Present inventim is dlrected and rough treatment. In order t make them cally to the structure of the tray which will now easy to handle they must be constructed of relabe described- As herembemre indicated" the tively light h t metal At t same time, many trays are formed from a suitabe gauge of sheet pounds and sometimes several hundred pounds metal with a bottom 1. integral end walls 8, and may be loaded into a single tray, The purpose a back wall 9. Inthe form of tray illustrated in of the present invention is to provide a tray con- Figures 1 t0 5 inclusive. the ay is continuously struction which maybe conveniently placed upon p across th m. the bottom at the from; the racks in connection with which they are to be of the y having a spe i lly formed lip w ch used, which are relatively strong and which, at will be hereinafter more fully de cribed. The the same time, are relatively light. Also, accord- 40 sheet metal forming the back wall of the tray ing to the present invention, those portions of the is. as m s clearly s w in i u s 2 and 5, tray which are adapted to engage the hooks on .folded over upon itself to provide a double thickthe supporting rack are formed to resist tearing ness of metal. This double thickness of metal is of the metal and they are of such shape as to then folded down at a downwardly diverging facilitate the placing f the trays upon the racks. angle, as indicated at l0. At each end of the Trays embodying y inve t on a e des ed to tray the folded over portion Ill is-bent inwardly esist dlstoltion p g in use and to be more against the back wall, as best shown at H in convement tohandle. Figure 3, and these portions so-pinched insare My invention y be more fully understood by spot welded or tack welded to the back wall. reference to the mpanying drawings, in Likewise, the portion l0 along the middle of'the which: back wall is pressed in and spot welded; as-indi- Figure 1 a front elevation of a rack with a cated at l2. This formation thereby provides two embodying my invention ereon; elongated sockets or pockets l3 formed between Figure 2 ma view partly in side elevation and the downwardly sloped part III and the back wall. partly in section and on a larger scale than Fig- Due to the metal being folded over to double ure 1, showing the construction of the back wall thickness the upper part of the back wall 9.is reof the tray and the manner in which the same is inforced with two thicknesses of metal, as indiengaged onasuppor ng rac cated at 9a in Figure 2 and the part III is also i re 3 is a top plan view of the tray shown of a double thickness of metal. This double in Figure 2; thickness of metal reinforces the upper edge of Figure 4 is an end view of the tray;

the tray, makes it more resistant to bending or warping and, at the same time, provides a structure which is resistant under all reasonable conditions of use to tearing or bending. As shown in Figure 2, the fingers O on the racks are adapted to be engaged under orprojected into the pockets II. Because of the relatively greater length of the pockets, it is easy for the operator to hook the tray into place on the rack, whereas it would be dimcult if the pockets were of a shorter length such as to require the tray to be centered before it could be hooked into place. The double thickness of metal is a protection against the wearing of the pockets and, whilethe double thick- While 1 have illustrated and described certain particular constructions, it will be understood that this is by way of illustration and that various changes and modifications may be made with in the contemplation of-my invention andiunder the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. For use on a rack structure having inclined tray supporting elements with a vertical series of notches providing hooks for engaging and supporting the trays. a tray structure formed of sheet ness very materially increases the strength of the tray. the arrangement is such that the tray is not held out away from the rack 4 but, as shown in Figure 2, the lowerrear-comer of the tray bears against the front edge of the rack 4 so that any thrust due to the'loading of the tray is resistled by the back wall being engaged against the rac To additionally strengthen the rear top edge of the tray along the region of the pockets, a longitudinally extending angle bar I4 is welded into the upper part of the tray with the vertical leg ofthe angle flush against and extending along the back wall 9 and with the horizontal web of the angle extending forwardly. A relatively light angle ll thus welded in place renders the back of the tray structure quite rigid and prevents deformation of thepockets.

As shown in Figure 5, the forward edge ofthe bottom 1 is also formed of metal of double thickness flattened upon itself and formed down into a depending lip IS. The double thickness of metal forming this lip portion-of the tray is further reinforced by a longitudinally extending angle bar It welded into place with the vertical web of the angle backing up the lip l5 and with the horizontal web of the angle bracing the forward edge of the bottom.

The tray as thus constructed is'extremely rigid and capable of supporting heavy loads even though unequally placed upon the tray and the tray is highly resistant to abusive treatment and rough handling. In some cases the trays may function more in the nature of bins, in which case the forward edge of thetray is made as shown in Figure 6, while the rear wall is of the construction previously described. As shown in Figure 6, the metal forming the bottom I. is carried forward to provide an upwardly extending metal with a bottom, end walls. and a back wall. the metal at the top of the back wall being folded over and flattened upon itself to provide atop portion of double thickness. the said portion of double thickness being outwardly folded upon itself and flattened down at each end and at the middle of the tray and being secured to the back wall of the tray where it is so flattened down, the portions intermediate the flattened down portions sloping downwardly and outwardly away from the back wall of the tray to provide elongated inverted hook engaging pockets.

2. For use on a rack structure having inclined tray supporting elements with a vertical series of notches providing hooks for engaging a d supporting the trays, a' tray structure formed of sheet metal with a bottom, end walls, and a back wall, the metal at the top of the back wall being folded over and flattened upon itself to provide a top portion of double thickness, the said portion of double thickness being outwardly folded upon itself and flattened down at each end and at the middle of the tray and being secured to the back wall of the tray where it is so flattened down, the portions intermediate the flattened one leg projecting horizontally reinforcing the wall I! and the top edge of this wall is bent over asindicated at It, to reinforce the edge.

To facilitate the handling of the tray there-is a handle assembly designatedgenerally as I! on each end wall of the tray. This handle comprises a metal plate 20 having an outwardly bent ridge 2| "intermediate its upper and lower edges,

. which plate} is welded to the end wall of the tray. A 'looped handle passes under theridge .portion'll of the plate 20' so that the loop in eifect'is hinged to the end wall. 'Thexplate '20 i has outwardly projecting fingers 23 at ieach-end, thereof over-the ends of the loop." These fingers:

prevent the handles from folding up "p8 St'83Substantially horizontal position. j This maybe plaing lylseenin- Figure'l'. yBecause-of this handle ,c' on struction, the tray-may be lifted without the him-1 7o dles -folding upwardly against 'the' end vvallsof the tray. 'Werejthey not stopped from swingingupwardly past a substantially horizontal-position theflng'ers of the operatormight be pinched-when heundertook tolIfta loaded tray,

upper edge portion of the tray and serving to protect the tray from distortion when the tray is heavily loaded. a

' of notches providing hooks for engaging and supporting the :trays, a tray structure formed of sheet metal with a bottom, end walls, and a back wall, the metal at the top of the back wall being folded over and flattened upon itself to provide a top portion ordouble thickness, the said portion of double thickness being outwardly folded upon itself and flattened down at each end and at the middle of the tray and being secured to the back wall of the tray where it is so flattened down, the portions intermediate the flattened down portions sloping downwardly and outwardly away from I the back wall of the tray to provide-elongatedinverted hook engaging pockets, and an angle bar extending lengthwise along the "upper edge of 'the back wall inside the tray with one leg thereof flat against the back wall and one leg' projecting horizontally reinforcing the upper edge portion of'the tray and serving to.proteci tray from distortion when thet'ray is heavily loaded, the tray being open along its front edge and having a, downwardly turned lip thereon, and

an inverted angle welded against the bottom'of the tray and the back surface of said lipito prevent distortion of the lip of the tray.

SAMUEL SAUL, Ja. 

